


Where it All Started

by PotatoQuinn



Series: More than Surviving [2]
Category: Law & Order: SVU, The 100 (TV)
Genre: Mentions of Slight Neglect, Natalie is a small child, mentions of child abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-15
Updated: 2017-01-23
Packaged: 2018-09-17 18:24:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9337475
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PotatoQuinn/pseuds/PotatoQuinn
Summary: Ten year old Natalie collapses at school and is taken to the hospital. Abuse is apparent and a case is formed. Detective Olivia Benson is assigned to the case along with her partner Elliot Stabler.OrHow Olivia came to know Natalie and the Blakes.





	1. Part 1

    “I want to go home.” The words were mumbled by ten year old Natalie Campbell as she clutched at her stomach and leaned against her teacher's desk. Her red hair hung in her face, hiding her pale face and pain-filled eyes. Her tummy hurt, really bad, and her arm hurt. 

    “And I want to go to the moon. It just ain't happening, sweetheart.” Ms. Taylor raised an eyebrow and set her red pen down. “Time to accept that. Now take your seat.” She motioned towards the rows of desks and stood, putting her hand on the girl's back. 

    “But Ms. Taylor,” Natalie clenched her teeth as the pain in her tummy got worse, and she hunched over to try and make it stop. “It hurts!”

    “Natalie, please take your seat so that I can start class. If you're still feeling ill after math, I'll send you to the clinic.” Ms. Taylor crossed her arms and tried not to huff out her annoyance. 

    Natalie could tell the teacher was getting irritated, so she groaned and took a step towards her desk. She doesn't register her world tilting, and she doesn't feel it when she hits the floor unconscious. 

 

**The hospital**

**September 7, 2005**

 

    “Is she conscious?” The first words Detective Olivia Benson lets out are directed at the head nurse in pediatrics. Thankfully, the tall woman starts leading her and her partner, Detective Elliot Stabler, down the hall. 

    “She was awake last time I checked in on her fifteen minutes ago.” Nurse Janie Court veered right, bringing the detectives to a closed door. The blinds were twisted open, and Olivia studied the child in the bed. From where she stood, she could barely make out her features. Red hair, pale face. She looked too small, but that could just be the blanket that looked too big. Janie looked at the chart in her arms. “She passed out at school, before class had even started. The x-rays-”

    “Excuse me, please let me through.” A woman with dark hair and two children trailing behind her pushed past the nurse and detectives. 

    “Ma'am, you can't go in there…” the nurse tried to protest, blinking in confusion. 

    “The hell I can't. That's my sister!” The little girl clutching onto her mother's shirt scowled, her dark eyes giving away her worry. 

    “Octavia Blake, watch your language!” The woman scolded the child, and shot a look at her son when he snickered. “You hush, Bellamy.”

    “But Mama!” Octavia looked up at her mother, her bottom lip trembling. 

    “Just hold on.” The woman turned to the three slightly stunned adults and thrust her hand out. “I'm Aurora Blake. I'm listed in Natalie's records as her emergency contact.”

    Olivia nodded and took point, taking the woman's hand in her own. “Detective Olivia Benson. This is my partner, Detective Elliot Stabler.”

    Aurora nodded once, tilting her head just slightly. “And why are you two here? Is Natalie in trouble?”

    “No ma'am. We were assigned to her case.” Olivia shifted her weight. 

    “Case? What case? What happened?” Aurora tensed up, looking in the room to study the redhead. When on one said anything, Aurora scowled. “Okay look. I get that I'm not family or whatever, but my best friend just died and left that little girl with her alcoholic, abusive father. We're all she has left.” the woman put her arms around her kids. 

    “Her father is abusive?” Detective Stabler crossed his arms. 

    “Well, to be honest, I can only assume so. He was always kind of violent when he drank, and last year when he came back home, he tried to keep Natalie away from us.” Aurora clenched her jaw. “Not that he succeeded.”

    The boy slouching next to his mother spoke up. “David didn't like that mom and Aunt Joyce were friends, he came over and yelled a lot.” He put his hand on his sister’s shoulder. “The last time we saw Nat, she was flinching a lot and had a bruise on her arm. She said she had hit the doorknob running through the house and laughed it off.”

    Olivia nodded and sighed. “Your daughter said Natalie is her sister?” 

    “Yes, they share a father. Not that he’d admit it out loud.” Aurora ran a hand through her little girl’s hair. “But I do have proof on paper.”

    “Do you mind if I ask her some questions?” Olivia asked Ms. Blake. 

    “Go ahead, but if she doesn't answer, don't push her.” Aurora raised a brow. 

    “Thank you.” The detective crouched down to level herself with the youngest Blake. “Alright, I need you to answer as honest as you can, okay?” The girl nodded, tilting her head curiously. “Has your dad ever hurt you?”

    Octavia thought for a second, tapping her chin. “No. He's mean with his words but he never hurt me.” She shook her head. 

    “That's good. When was the last time you saw your sister?” Olivia asked, keeping her attention on the little brunette. 

    “Um, before school ended last year. Then David wouldn't let her come over anymore and wouldn't let me and Bell over there.” Octavia answered, frowning. “I really miss her. When can I see her?”

    Nurse Janie stepped in then, glancing at the adults. “Actually, it looks like she is awake. If you and your brother are gentle and quiet, you can go in and visit with her while your mom talks to the detectives and I.” 

    Octavia looks up at her mother, brightening at the thought. “Please Mama, we'll be good!”

    “Yeah, that's a good idea. I'm sure she misses you two as much as you miss her.” Aurora smiled down at her daughter and reaches for the door. “I'm going to say hello, and then I'll join you in a moment.” She followed her kids into the private room, smiling at the little ginger in the bed. “Hey sweetheart. How you feeling?”

    “Aunt Aurora!” Natalie grinned, not moving much. “Octavia! Bellamy! I missed you guys so much!” She reached out and took her sister’s hand in one hand, and Bellamy's in the other. 

    “We missed you too, Nat. Right Mama, Bell?” Octavia climbed up onto the bed and sat Indian-style, being careful not to touch the injured girl. “The summer was real boring since we couldn't see you.”

    Aurora smiled at the youngest girl's chatter and leaned over to kiss the redhead on the forehead. “I'm going to speak with the nurse and detectives now, you three behave. Bellamy, you come get us if something happens.”

    “I will. Don't worry mom, I won't let anything happen.” Bellamy squeezed Natalie’s hand and looked up at his mother, his eyes serious. 

    Aurora nodded and left the room, shutting the door softly. She turned to the detectives and nurse expectantly. “The only thing I was told when I was called was that she collapsed at school and was taken here. What's going on?”

    Nurse Janie nodded, taking that as her cue to restart explaining. “Yes, she lost consciousness this morning. She is covered in bruises of various ages, mostly on her legs and torso. Doctor Smith ran some scans and and x-ray, and there seems to be evidence of a butterfly fracture on her left arm about a year old. That kind of fracture can only be caused by her arm being twisted a certain way, usually consistent with abuse victims.” She flipped through the notes on the chart and then handed Stabler the clipboard. “Doctor Smith requested we call you guys, especially when she woke up and begged to be taken home before she got in trouble.”

    Aurora stood in her spot, tense as a few different emotions flitted through her. Anger for the girl in the hospital bed, disgust at David for what she assumed he had done, and then guilt for not being there to protect her best friend's daughter. 

    “Where is Doctor Smith now, why isn't he the one filling us in?” Detective Benson read the chart over her partner’s shoulder, frowning. 

    Janie nodded, expecting this question. “Doctor Smith is a very busy man. He works at three different hospitals, and is currently not in the city. He will answer any questions you have that I can't answer, and his number is there on the chart.”

    “Thank you,” Olivia said softly. She turned to Aurora then. “Have you seen Natalie in the last year?”

    “Yes. Like I said earlier, he tried to keep her away from us, but Joyce always found a way to get Natalie out of that house. We would go to the park so the kids could play, or to a fast food restaurant. Sometimes they would come over to our place.” Aurora ran a hand down her face, crossing her arms and sighing tiredly. “I had suspicions that they were being abused, but I didn't have any proof.”

    “They? You think he was abusing the mother too?” Stabler spoke up, still reading through the notes on the chart. 

    “Yes, I think Joyce was being abused too. She wore long sleeves on warm days and flinched if I hugged her too hard.” Aurora glared at the man. 

    “She never told you she was being abused?” Olivia asked, glancing at Elliot. 

    “No, she never said anything. But we've been friends for five years. When you know someone that long, when you're always around them, you can tell if something is wrong.” Ms. Blake sighed again, leaning sideways against the wall. “Joyce was diagnosed with cancer two years ago, and I suppose that could've been what I was picking up on. But Natalie was always flinching if Bellamy or I raised our voices, or if Bellamy came at her too fast. And like he said before, there were times when there were bruises and she’d blame it on a doorknob or on falling.”

    “And you never thought to call child protective services?” Elliot looked up then, raising a brow. 

    “I didn't have any proof that he was hurting them! I thought that if I had called and there wasn't any evidence, he’d find a way to turn it on me and get my kids taken away.” Aurora looked into the room and watched the kids laugh, Octavia playing with Natalie’s hand while Bellamy danced around making silly faces.

    “Okay, you have a point. The system's not perfect.” Olivia nodded and ran a hand through her hair. She turned to Stabler and straightened her posture. “Call Dr. Huang to talk with Natalie. If it is the girl's father that hurt her so badly, I don't want anything to be jeopardized.”

    Detective Stabler nodded and stepped away to make the call, and Aurora looked back at Olivia. “David can't see her, right? Especially if she says she doesn't want to see him?” The woman rubbed her arms, trying to look more angry than scared. 

    “If she doesn't want to see him, he won't be allowed in.” Olivia confirmed, placing a hand on Aurora’s arm in an attempt at comfort. 

 

**The hospital**

**September 8, 2005**

 

    The hospital was bustling and busy, filled to the brim with patients from a pile-up on the nearby highway. Nurses and doctors ran around followed by interns, and any visitors stayed in the rooms of the people they were visiting to stay out of the way. One nurse huffed as yet another patient was brought in. “Mother Nature sure picked a crappy day to dump this ice on us.”

    The intern next to her barked out a strained laugh as he handed her the box of gloves he had grabbed from the counter. “You're telling me. I was almost a victim too, caught my balance just in time this morning.”

    Aurora Blake watched all this from in her best friend's daughter's room, thanking whatever deity existed that her kids had arrived at school okay. She sat in a chair by the child's side, leaning over and stroking her hair from her forehead. She was tired, having worked late into the night so she could have today off to be with Natalie. She had taken her kids home the evening before, with assurances that only the detectives, the nurses, and the doctors would be allowed to see the girl. Aurora sighed and tucked a strand of rogue red hair behind the girl's ear as someone knocked on the door. She barely looked up when Detective Olivia Benson walked in. 

    “How's she doing?” Olivia kept her voice gentle, so as to not wake Natalie. 

    “The doctor said she's doing okay, but I don't think he was being completely honest with me.” the younger woman rubbed her thumb in little circles over the back of Natalie’s hand. “She passed out at school, that's not normal.”

    Olivia nodded and frowned, then moved quickly to the side when the door opened again. “Oh, sorry, excuse me. Sorry. Um, there's a man out here asking about Natalie. He says he's her father?” the nervous nurse talked as her hands flew about, not coming in any further. 

    That was the moment Natalie chose to wake up, and she sat up a bit. “Aunt Aurora? What's-”

    “Shh, it's okay.” Aurora gently pressed Natalie back down and looked at the detective. 

    “I have to ask this, but you can say no, okay?” Olivia crouched down to level with Natalie, who nodded. “Do you want to see your dad? Before you answer, if you say you don't, he won't be allowed in here, okay?”

    Natalie tensed up, the terror in her eyes apparent. “I don't wanna see him.” she looked between the two women as her lip trembled. “He hurts me.”

    Olivia nodded and turned to leave. “I'll be right back, and then I need to speak with you, Ms. Blake.” She left the room, only to run into Dr. Huang, the psychiatrist that the precinct consulted with. “Or actually,” she leaned back in. “Natalie, I have a friend here who would like to talk to you, would that be okay?”

    “Can Aunt Aurora stay here?” Natalie blinked at the detective. 

    “Of course, if you want her to.” she stepped aside to allow Huang inside. “This is Doctor George Huang, he just wants to ask you a few questions.”

    “Hello Natalie. How are you feeling?” Dr. Huang spoke softly, and Olivia left them to their conversation. 

    She entered the waiting area and spotted a man at the counter, yelling angrily. “What the hell do you mean I can't see her?! She's my daughter!”

    “I'm sorry sir, she doesn't want any other visitors.” the nurse at the counter was trying to stay strong and emotionless, but her hands shook visibly, showing her anxiety. 

    “David Campbell?” Olivia cut in, forcing herself between the nurse and the man. “I'm Detective Olivia Benson, NYPD, Special Victims Unit.”


	2. Chapter 2

**The hospital**

**September 8, 2005**

 

    Aurora Blake paced the hallway, pushing her fingers through her thick dark hair. After Natalie started seizing in the middle of talking to that Asian psychiatrist, the nurses and doctors kicked her out. They wouldn't tell her what was happening, and when her friend from work dropped her kids off, she had had no idea what to tell them. 

    “Nat’ll be okay, right Mama?” Octavia tugged at her mother's pants, frowning. 

    “Yeah, I'm sure she'll be alright. Why don't we go to the waiting room and see if there's a book or something for you to read?” Aurora took her daughter's hand and nudged her son to follow. Maybe someone there would tell her what was going on.  _ Or not,  _ she thought, pulling her daughter back and pushing her son behind her. Standing at the nurse's station was none other than David Campbell, his brown hair stringy and skin pale. 

    “What the hell are the cops doing here? Where is my daughter?!” The man bellowed, getting into the detective's face. She looked calm, and was holding her own. The lack of any reaction from her just pissed David off and he pointed a finger in her face. “You have no right to keep me from seeing her!”

    Aurora scoffed and shook her head. The man had no tact and obviously was too drunk to think of an actual argument. Octavia peeked out from behind her mother's leg, her big brown eyes curious. “Daddy?” She mumbled the term, sounding wrong coming from her mouth. He was only her daddy in name, not really worthy to be acknowledged as such. But she hadn't seen him in forever, and she was worried about her sister, so she said it, hoping that he would recognize that she needed reassurance that Nat was gonna be okay. Even if it was from the father that didn't want her. 

    The man spun and glowered at the trio by the hall, a vein standing out on his forehead. Then, his face turned stony, calculating, and he stretched his lips in a horrible attempt at smiling kindly. “Hey babygirl, you here visiting your sister?” He knelt down, leveling himself with the girl. Octavia stepped out from behind her mother, furrowing her eyebrows in confusion. He never spoke to her, really, unless he was trying to make her mama mad. But even then, he wasn't this kind. She stayed next to her mom, holding onto her hand tightly. “Come and see your daddy, babygirl. Come on!” he held his hands out in open invitation, and she glanced up at the grownups. 

    Her mama tightened her grip on her hand, and the detective frowned really hard. Bellamy stepped out too, standing on her other side with his hand on her shoulder. Octavia looked back at her daddy and shook her head, her eyes wide. “I don't think Mama wants me to.” 

    David's face contorted, and he lifted his lip up in a sneer. “I ain't gonna hurt you, you're my little girl! I just wanna give you a hug!” 

    “I don't want a hug from you. You don't even like me.” Octavia scowled, holding her mom's hand and her brother's. “You always tell Mama that I ain't yours, why would you change your mind?” The little girl screwed up her face to stop from crying, because even though this is what she believed, she really wanted her daddy to want her. 

    David evidently decided to change tactics once again and stood up, stumbling a bit as he turned back towards Detective Benson. He stuck his meaty finger back in her face and sneered. “I don't know how you found out, but there's no way to prove it anyway. You leave my kids alone.” 

    “Prove what, Mr. Campbell?” Olivia was calm still, confusion colouring her features. 

    “You know very well what or you wouldn't be here!” He staggered again, his face becoming even more pale as he continued to yell. 

    Aurora seemed to catch what he was saying, raising an eyebrow as she straightened her posture. The folder her best friend had given her made more sense, now.  _ “You'll know when it's needed. Keep them close, Rore.”  _ Joyce had smiled a thin smile as she pressed the folder into her hands.  _ “This could very well be the only thing that saves Natalie.”  _ Joyce had waved the journal, showing her friend some of the entries inside.  _ “This contains the name of David's sister, and she's a cop. She'll make sure my little girl is taken care of.”  _ Because the redhead had googled the name, of course, to check her out. 

    The brunette squeezed her daughter's hand once before letting go, opening her purse and pulling the manila folder out. She pushed her kids to a couple of chairs and handed Bellamy her bag, opening the folder and taking out the sheef of papers. She scanned through them, her breath catching when she found what she needed. “Detective Benson, I think you need to see this.” She handed a few of the papers to Olivia, including a handwritten letter from Joyce explaining the papers, signed by Aurora and two other people who had witnessed the whole ordeal. She had found a journal in her husband's drawer, and flipping through it had revealed that the journal had belonged to David's birth father, Joseph Hollister. The old man had written about his children: his son, David Campbell, and his daughter, Olivia Benson. The entries had stopped shortly after Olivia was born, leaving much to speculate about. 

    Aurora smirked at David as the detective read through the papers, her face going slack in disbelief. Olivia looked up at David in shock, with a little anger mixed in. “You're my brother.” She said it with a voice dripping with contempt. She shook her head once, still trying to grasp the information that now filled her head. David Campbell was her half-brother. That made the two sisters her nieces, didn't it? 

    “You can't prove it!” David snarled, reaching for the papers. “What the hell are these anyway?”

    Olivia snatched the papers back and held them close, still trying to comprehend everything. She shook her head and pulled out her phone, dialling her partner. She went off to a secluded corner to have her conversation while a couple of security guards arrived.David still struggled, and he glared daggers at Olivia when she hung up and stood in front of him once more. “Natalie Campbell has been removed from your custody until further notice. Some of my colleagues will be here shortly to take over the case.” 

    “What do you mean, removed from my custody!?” The security guards hauled David away with him still yelling. 

    Olivia shook her head and turned to Aurora Blake, lifting the papers in her hands. “These are legit?” 

    Aurora handed her the folder, and Olivia took it and opened it. Inside were more papers, and a few pictures. Pictures of the original journal sitting in a drawer, on a table and opened to reveal the pages inside. “Joyce only snooped because she thought David was hiding like drugs or something. Turned out to be his father's journal, so she took pictures and made copies. Wrote that letter explaining why, and had me and a couple of her coworkers sign it as witnesses.” The mother sighed and sat down next to her daughter, pulling the little girl into her lap. “Natalie needs help. Ever since Joyce got sick, she's been hurting. Losing her mother only made matters worse.” She looked up at the detective, weariness and worry evident in her gaze. “I can't take her in, I'm barely making enough for the three of us.” She left it at that, not wanting to push the issue. 

    Before Olivia could say anything, a nurse pushed into the waiting room, looking around in a panic. “I- I don't know how it happened, we're usually better prepared…” He looked up and recognized the Blake's from earlier. “Natalie was bleeding internally. She's okay now,” he held up his hands to calm the sudden panic that he watched take the people over so quickly, “but she needs a transfusion. We're out of A+. Can any of you donate?”

    “I can.” Olivia looked at the doctor, licking her lips. 

    The nurse nodded and nodded his head back towards where he came from. “Good. Follow me, I'll get you prepped.” 

 

**The hospital:**

**September 9, 2005**

 

    Olivia stood by Natalie's door, her arms hugging her torso as she looked in to watch the little girl sleep. Yesterday had revealed a lot of things, and the brunette was trying to sort it all out. Olivia had had them do a blood test to prove what the papers were saying were true. She held the results in her hand. 

    “You doing okay, Olivia?” Elliot Stabler leaned against the window nearby, crossing his arms and looking at the opposite wall. The social worker that had been assigned to Natalie stood nearby.

    “Hmm? Yeah, considering.” She shifted her weight and held the DNA test results out to her partner. 

    Stabler took the papers and looked through them, raising an eyebrow. “So. You have a brother who's an abusive alcoholic?” He handed the papers back. “And two nieces? What's there to consider?”

    Olivia shook her head, lifting one shoulder while she took the papers back. “What am I supposed to do with this information, El?” She tucked the papers back under her arm and resumed her earlier stance, hugging her torso and watching the girl sleep. 

    “You could take custody of Natalie. Right? You're her family, you could do that, can't you?” Olivia turned to find the Blake boy standing in the hall with his hands in his jacket pockets. “Mom wants to, but she doesn't think she could handle all three of us. She works a lot.”

    “You're Bellamy Blake, right?” Elliot stood up straight, putting his hands on his hips. “What are you doing here, where's your mother?”

    “She's at work. Octavia’s with the sitter. I wanted to see Natalie, make sure she was okay.” He glanced at the room door and shifted his weight. “Is she okay?”

    Olivia nodded, her brow creasing. “She will be. They were able to fix everything yesterday.” She avoided his earlier questions. That didn't last for long. 

    “You're David's sister, aren't you?” There was a tick in his jaw, and he reached up and pushed his hair out of his eyes. “You're the last of Natalie's family, other than O. The last of her biological family, anyway.” He glanced at the doorway again, frowning. 

    “Listen, Bellamy, I- I can promise that she'll be taken care of. I can't do more than that right now.” Olivia shifted uncomfortably. 

    Bellamy nodded, sighing. “I guess that's better than nothing. Maybe you should talk to her though.” He nodded at the room, smiling. “After I say hi.” He pushed past the detectives and went into Natalie's room, smiling. “Hey Nat, how you feeling?” 

    Natalie smiled at him and yawned. “I'm exhausted. Did they tell you what happened? ‘Cause no one will tell me. One second I was talking to that doctor about Daddy, and then everything started hurting real bad.”

    Bellamy shook his head and pulled up a chair. “I dunno, they didn't tell me or O. But I can tell you that you had to have a blood transfusion. Detective Benson donated for you.” He nodded at the door, where the woman stood and pretended not to listen. 

    “Oh. That's serious, isn't it? A blood transfusion?” The redhead furrowed her eyebrows and blinked slowly. 

    “Yeah, it's serious. But you're gonna be okay, Nat.” He looked back at the door and smiled. “Detective Benson wants to talk to you about something. I have to get back home before the sitter realizes I left. O and I will come visit later when mom gets off work.” He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to Natalie's forehead, smiling. 

    “Okay. Bye, Bell, don't get in trouble.” She smiled and watched him leave.

    “Natalie? Is it alright if I come in and talk with you?” Olivia stood by the door uncertainly. She made her way inside when the girl nodded, and she shut the door after the social worker, who opted to lean against the wall. “Do you remember me?”

    “You're the detective that was here yesterday.” The redhead blinked at Olivia, playing with the edge of her blanket.

    “Yes, my name is Olivia Benson, and I am a detective.” Olivia glanced at the social worker behind her. “This is Paige Morgan, she's a social worker.”

    “Nice to meet you,” Natalie responded, remembering her manners.

    “Natalie, I'm not here as a detective right now. When I donated my blood yesterday, I had them run a DNA test.” She pulled out the results and the copies of the journal, holding them up. “Your mother gave these copies to Ms. Blake. They are copies of a journal your father had found of his father's.” She spoke slowly so that she could be sure the child could understand. “In the journal, your grandfather had written the names of his children.” She handed one such entry to Natalie to read. “Can you read that?”

    “Yeah.” Natalie read through the short passage quickly, frowning. “It says David Campbell and Olivia Benson. That's you and Daddy.” She looked up at the detective.

    “Yeah, and the DNA test came back positive.” Olivia held up the results then. 

    “So, you're my aunt?”Natalie looked at the DNA results like they held all the answers. 

    “Yes.” Olivia nodded, watching the girl closely.

    “Well then, Detective Benson. Seeing as you're Miss Campbell's closest living relative and she needs a guardian, I am appointing you as that guardian.” Paige Morgan spoke up from near the door, pulling out her phone and typing something into it. “Unless there's some reason you can't…?”

    “No. Um, I mean that's fine.” Olivia glanced at the social worker, her eyes wide. She had spoken without thinking, like puking words. 

    “Good. So that part is done. I just need you to sign a few things.” She pulled out a tablet and tapped on it a few times, than handed it and a stylus to the detective. Once the signatures were recorded, she shut the tablet off and stood straighter. “I expect you'll handle the rest?” 

    Olivia nodded and watched the social worker leave. She nodded once and turned to Natalie, who was silent through the whole thing. “So, are you okay with this?” 

    The ten year old shifted her head and nodded. “Yeah. I don't really have anywhere else to go, do I? Plus, I think you're nice.” She smiled, her eyes getting droopy.

    Olivia nodded and smoked a small smile of her own. “Thanks. Why don't you get some sleep before the Blakes get here?” She folded the papers and put them in her pocket, standing. “I'm just going to talk to the doctor.” She reached out and tucked a strand of red hair behind the girl's ear before leaving the room. 

 

**Olivia's apartment**

**September 14, 2005**

 

    “Welcome home, Natalie.” Olivia smiled and opened the bedroom door, letting the girl in. The room was simple, with a double bed in the corner, and a desk under the window. A dresser sat across from the bed, and a closet next to it. It was sparse and clean, with no decorations in it yet. “You can decorate it how you like later, if you want.”

    “Thanks, Aunt Olivia. I know you didn't have to take me in, so thanks.” Natalie smiled wide, hugging the woman before going inside and looking around. She spun to face Olivia, who hadn't moved yet. “Is something wrong?”

    Olivia shook her head and hooked her thumb behind her. “Wanna get pancakes? There's a place I know nearby.” 

    Natalie grinned and dropped her bag on the couch, nodding. “Yes!” She skipped to Olivia and grabbed her hand, grinning up at her. 

    Olivia smiled widely and squeezed her niece's hand, pulling her out of the apartment and down to the street. “They're build your own pancakes, so you can put whatever you want on them.”

    “Even strawberries? Those are my favourites!” 

    Olivia laughed, nodding. “Yeah, even strawberries.”


End file.
